Welcome to this time of team intercession on behalf of young people in your neighborhood, community and around the globe. This morning we offered a solitude guide that invited us to enjoy the attentive and loving care of the Good Shepherd. If members of this team had the opportunity to enjoy that guide, take a few moments to share what was meaningful to you or how you experienced the Lord in silence and solitude.
Giving Thanks and Praise
With gratitude for what was offered, open this time of corporate prayer with the invitation from Psalm 95:6 and 7:
“Come, let us bow down in worship,
let us kneel before the LORD our Maker;
for he is our God
and we are the people of his pasture,
the flock under his care.”
Take a moment to offer thanks and praise to God for His faithful love and care for you and for those you love. If you are able, sing a song of praise.
Meditating on God’s Word
Read together Luke 15:1-7. Have one team member read it twice, slowly, while others prayerfully listen. After a moment of silence, share a word or phrase that was meaningful to you or captured your attention. Simply share the word or phrase without explanation or elaboration.
After everyone who wants to has shared, have another team member read the passage again, slowly. Listen in prayerful silence. Ask the Lord to help you begin to digest the word or phrase you are ruminating upon. After two or three moments of silence, share with one another what you became most aware of in this reading and silence. What did the Living Word of God stir within you?
As you think about the lost sheep in your neighborhood, community and the world, what encouragement do you draw from this passage?
Imagine what it would be like to be draped across the shoulders of Jesus while He joyfully carried you home. Your cheek is next to His. He is singing or humming or maybe whistling, planning a party for later. Recall what it was like for you when Jesus “carried you home.” Share something of your homecoming with the team.
Intercede
Take time as a team to intercede for others. As you pray, remember how the Lord rescued you; be encouraged that the Good Shepherd is still at work. Rest assured that He will not rest until He finds His lost sheep and joyfully brings each one of them home.
Pray for:
- Young people who are lost and in need of Jesus
- Those the Lord has already joyfully carried home
- For the men and women throughout this mission who are searching alongside Jesus for lost sheep, including staff at every post and volunteer leaders
- For the friends in the crowd who celebrate with us when a lost sheep is found, including committee members and financial partners
Let’s pray for:
• Kids who are physically hungry, thirsty or in need of basic provisions like shelter or clothing. (Psalm 12:5; Psalm 113:7-8)
• Kids who are sick in body or sick at heart; for kids who are “homesick” for the Father’s house, and may not even know it. (Matthew 14:13-14; Psalm 34:18; John 1:11-13)
• Kids who are feeling like a stranger, forgotten, abandoned or like they simply do not belong. (Psalm 139:13-18; Isaiah 49:15-16)
• Kids who are in prison, whether behind bars made of steel or bars made of fear, self-rejection, addiction or other realities that keep them from experiencing the generous freedom Jesus offers. (2 Corinthians 3:17; Luke 4:16-21)
Celebration
End this time of intercession by joining the celebration in Luke 15:5 and 6. Thank God for those lost sheep He has carried home. Thank Him for carrying YOU home. Thank Him for hearing your prayers and rising to show compassion (Isaiah 30:18 and 19).
Closing Prayer and Benediction
Read together Ephesians 3:14-21 as a closing prayer and benediction for this time.
Thank you for interceding with the mission
on this Global Day of Prayer.
© 2004-2023 Young Life. All rights reserved.